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Archival description
Okanagan Helicopters Ltd. fonds Series
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Accidents and crashes

The series consists of photographs of several accident sites involving OHL helicopters, including the 1962 McNulty crash. The series also consists of tributes to crew members Donald Roy Jacques, Mervin Carne Hesse, and Bert Warttig who were killed in crashes in 1976 and 1981. Although some photographs depict the CF-FDN crash that occurred near Whitehorse, the majority of photographs are presumed to depict incidents that occurred in British Columbia. The 1976 and 1981 incidents occurred on Grouse Mountain (North Vancouver) and near Lillooet, respectively.

The series consists of copies of handwritten notes on the life of Mike McDonough that may have been intended for use in a memorial tribute or obituary in the company’s publication RotorTales. McDonough was killed when the Bell 214ST that he was flying crashed into Big Lake, near Edmonton, Alberta during an October 1985 test flight.

The file “D Mackenzie/M. McDonough” is arranged as it was when transferred to the BC Archives, and includes some seemingly unrelated material, including photographs from China in 1984 and two undated newspaper clippings of Okanagan Helicopters Ltd. assisting with salmon fishing.

The series is arranged chronologically.

Associated companies' records

The series consists of registers, books of share certificates, and directors’ and members’ minutes created between 1931 and 1992 by Canadian companies. The majority of the companies were helicopter businesses that were acquired by Okanagan during a period of large-scale expansion in the 1970s. Some of these businesses acquired other companies before themselves being acquired by Okanagan.

The companies represented in the series are Ambank Aircraft Limitée; Ariel Engineering Limited; Associated Helicopters Company Limited; Canadian Helicopters Limited; Creighton Helicopters Ltd; Dominion Pegasus Helicopters Ltd; Haida Helicopters Ltd; Heli-Aero Logging; Lac St Jean Aviation Limitée; Lecky Paper Ltd; Sept-Iles Helicopter Services; and Smith, Davidson & Wright.

The series also consists of photographic prints depicting other companies' operations and aircraft, as well as proof sheets, letterhead, and envelopes. The series also consists of legal documentation and correspondence for Lecky Paper.
With the exception of company stationary, which appears to have been arranged by Okanagan staff into one general file, the series is organized alphabetically by company and chronologically within each company. This chronological arrangement reflects the order in which the records were received upon transferal to the BC Archives.

Awards and certificates

The series consists of a variety of certificates awarded to Okanagan Helicopters Ltd. in recognition of their work and to mark participation in professional organizations and programs during the 1970s and 1980s. The work includes assistance in forest fire suppression and participation in the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. The series also includes a certificate from the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame as well as a photograph of former politician Pat McGeer and Pat Aldous, president of Okanagan Helicopters Ltd between 1983 and 1987. The series also consists of blank Okanagan Helicopters Ltd training certificates

Director and shareholder records

The series consists of meeting minutes from directors, shareholders, executive council and audit committees; memoranda; certificates of extra-provincial registration; interim shareholder reports; press release drafts; lists of shareholders; and plans for corporate projects. The series is arranged chronologically within sections based on the records-creating body. The records document issues of importance and key events in the company’s history, including a confidential 1963 report on the state of Okanagan’s management. The series consists of records produced both by Okanagan Helicopters Ltd and, to a lesser degree, its successor body, Canadian Helicopters Ltd.

Earlier minutes provide a wealth of details on financial, operational, and technical issues, and provide evidence of frequent discussions surrounding salaries and benefits. Contract issues and equipment purchases also appear with some frequency. The series also provides evidence of early discussions on overseas expansion.

The series also includes records that supplement the later minutes, including travel reports and legal documentation. Files purporting to contain annual reports contain corporate summaries and annual balance sheets. Shareholder circulars detail amalgamations, including a 1973 bid by John Lecky’s The Resource Service Group Ltd to take over Okanagan Helicopters Ltd., and other records document company accomplishments.

Some minutes and related documents appear to have been removed by Okanagan staff for research purposes, possibly during the early 1980s. These can be found with other research material in MS-3184

Equipment

The series consists of general and technical photographic material of aircraft and equipment, as well as correspondence, booklets and Okanagan-produced “Fact Sheets” on specific helicopter models. The series is arranged alphabetically by aircraft company, and includes material originating with the Engineering Support Division. The photographs were taken by Okanagan and its partners, and the majority of these images are presumed to have been taken in BC.
The series includes material on Bell, Hiller, AStar aircraft and the Hughes 500. For the majority of material pertaining to the Sikorsky Aircraft company, please see MS-3193. Sikorsky material is only present in this series if it has been included in files with other material.

The series also consists of two 16 mm film reels. One, produced by Bell Helicopters, features the 214ST, and may have been used as a marketing or training film.

The series also consists of photographs of crop spraying systems, the HUSS bucket, Sky Genie lift system, and the Monzoon and Bambi Buckets.

There appears to have been an attempt by the creator to arrange files based on aircraft company, although this was not always consistent. The arranging archivist has attempted to mirror this system.

A list of films removed from the series is available.

Hangar and base records

The series consists of photographic prints, architectural drawings, maps, and textual records pertaining to the building, leasing, and licensing of various Okanagan Helicopters Ltd hangars in BC, Alberta, and the Northwest Territories. Photographs depict personnel at work in the Vancouver hangar in the 1950s, and provide general views of the buildings. The majority of the records date to between the 1960s and 1980s.

The majority of records in the series were found in files stamped with the words “General Files Library.” The “General Files Library” was further subdivided into files pertaining to “bases” and “operations.” File titles reflect this original organization, but the files have been split between series to facilitate research. The received order of the “General Files Library” indicates that the creator also differentiated between base and operational files and organized each section alphabetically.

Leases and agreements

The series consists of leases and agreements documenting Okanagan’s wide range of operational partners and contracts in North America and across the world. The agreements are predominantly between Okanagan Helicopters Ltd and various manufacturers, extraction industry partners such as Imperial Oil and Mobil Oil, and international defense partners.

The files were originally housed in several large accordion files entitled “Vault Files No 1-50 incl,” “Vault Files 51-93 incl,” and “Vault File – No. 94.” The creator's file arrangement has been maintained in this series. The ordering is based on document number, however, this number appears to have been assigned chronologically. The agreements, memoranda of understanding, and leases reveal the wide international scope of Okanagan’s work, and highlight the company’s importance on the world stage by the late 1970s. Many of the operations represented here are not documented in the Operations – extra-provincial (MS-3189) series, and it is unclear if other records were ever maintained from these events.

The series largely excludes leases for land or licensing for bases; with the exception of the land title document for the Inuvik base, this information can be found in MS-3181.

Manuscripts and research material

The series consists of material used by an Okanagan employee in the course of her research into the company’s history during the early 1980s. Many of the records date from the period 1947-1959. The material includes correspondence from publishers, as well as historical company files including minutes, press and publicity material, and other executive-level documents that were removed from the original files. In some cases, single documents were removed from files; in others, the entire file was relocated. Also included in the research material are inter-office memos, photographs, Douglas Dewar’s correspondence, material relating to Sikorsky Aircraft, and the minutes from Okanagan Air Service, the precursor to Okanagan Helicopters Ltd. Furthermore, the researcher included photocopies of other books on the general history of helicopters and aviation, and material relating to author Peter Corley-Smith. The series consists of letters and material from the Canada Council of the Arts and correspondence regarding grant applications.

The series also consists of an excerpt of an earlier manuscript written by founder Barney Bent as well as handwritten notes written on a scratch pad, which appear to have also belonged to Bent.

Newsclippings and company history files

The series consists of newspaper clippings, a photocopied narrative history, and files of photographs that were compiled by Okanagan staff to chart the company’s evolution. It appears that many photographs and other original records were re-arranged into chronological or subject-based files after their initial creation. Although the records cover the period to 1989, they focus predominantly on the company’s first two decades.

The author of the unpublished history is unknown, although the archivist speculates that Barney Bent may be a likely author. Rough notes most likely belonging to Bent were found mixed in with the narrative files.

Newspaper clippings highlight a variety of events in the helicopter industry. While clippings from the period 1965-1980 are assembled in clippings files, earlier and later clippings appear mixed in with other records. The articles are excerpted from industry publications and Canadian newspapers covering BC to Newfoundland, as well as from international publications such as the New York Times and a Bangkok-based newspaper. Although many clippings relate only to the general helicopter industry, other articles feature Okanagan pilots and operations. The amalgamation with Canadian Helicopters is also featured. The clippings provide a general overview not only of the burgeoning helicopter industry, but also of Okanagan’s achievements.

The series also consists of the transcript of a 1983 interview with John Lecky, chairman of the Resource Service Group Ltd. Also included in this file are several photographs of the Heli Express service.

The files are arranged chronologically.

Author of the narrative history included in the files may be A H ‘Barney’ Bent.

Newsletters

The series consists of newsletters that were intended for distribution to employees throughout the company. The series includes the staff newsletter which was known variously as “Chips from the Oaken Noggin,” “The Okanagan Reporter,” and “RotorTales." The newsletters, which include those created by Okanagan and its succesor, Canadian Helicopters, cover the period 1959-1991, with one edition dating to 1954.

The series also consists of “Administration Info-Man,” a newsletter printed between 1982 and 1988 that was intended for managerial staff. Info-Man included articles on finances, employee relations, and effective management strategies. While the staff newsletter enjoyed wide distribution, the majority of Info-Man issues were marked confidential. It is unclear whether the newsletter had a longer print run than what is represented in the fonds.

The staff newsletter published articles of general interest, including features on life at different bases, notices of awards, and articles on operations. Early lists of “where the boys are” provide a provisional staff list for many of Okanagan’s bases. The newsletter provided a short welcome to new staff, and gave brief summaries of the progress of international operations. Locales such as Pakistan and South America frequently warrant longer travel reports. Later newsletters also feature a social page with birth, marriage, and death notices. Articles were frequently written by organization executives, including Pat Aldous, John Lecky, and John Pitts, and in 1987, the company issued a 40th anniversary edition that featured a retrospective of the company’s history.

The series consists of a near-complete set of RotorTales, although it is unclear whether the newsletter was published between 1954 and 1959 and between 1965 and 1977.

The series is divided into sections of staff newsletters and managerial-level newsletters, and then arranged chronologically within each section.

Operations records - BC

The series consists of photographs, slides, film reels, and textual records documenting the broad scope of Okanagan’s British Columbia-based operations. These activities included topographical surveys, construction projects, power line stringing, heli-skiing, heli-logging, and air ambulance services. The records date predominantly to the 1950s through 1970s.

The series consists of prints taken at Kemano, a project that is considered by some as the turning point for Okanagan’s fortunes. Several photographs were allegedly taken between 1956 and 1962, although many of the prints date from 1950 to 1955. Photographs also depict one of Okanagan’s earliest construction projects at the 1949 Palisade Lake Dam site.

The series provides textual and photographic records of Okanagan’s involvement with the air ambulance service, an initiative which began in 1977. The series also consists of several photographs and film reels that document Okanagan’s involvement with heli-logging and heli-skiing from the 1960s and 1970s, including several commercially-produced promotional heli-skiing films. Negatives show Okanagan's involvement with other commercial films, such as the filming of the 1995 Hollywood film "Bad Company."

The creator originally classified many of the operational files by the model of helicopter used, rather than by the year or type of operation. The archivist has arranged all operational files together. File titles clearly reflect the creator’s system.

Similarly, the series consists of several files from the ‘General Files Library,’ which included numerous files on hangars and bases in addition to operational files. The two subsections were clearly organized as related, yet independent, bodies.

The series is arranged into sections based on type of operation, and then chronologically within each section.

Operations records - extra-provincial

The series consists of textual records, photographs, and film reels documenting Okanagan Helicopters' out-of-province operations, including those across Canada, the United States, South America, the Middle East, Australia, and Asia.

The series consists of photographs of the 1955 contract for the Geological Survey of Canada, which surveyed the Arctic Islands, the Franklin District, and the Northwest Territories, and was Okanagan’s first non-BC based operation. Several film reels also document the Franklin operation. International operations commenced shortly thereafter in 1958 and quickly expanded. Photographs and textual records also detail the 1965 operation to fly a Sikorsky S61 from Connecticut to London’s Gatwick airport.

Due to the creation of historical files, there is some degree of overlap with the records of MS-3185. The historical files offer a narrative view of many operations, and in some cases also include records that were removed for inclusion in the historical files. Many agreements from international operations were maintained in ‘vault files’ that have been arranged in series MS-3183.

The records have been arranged chronologically by operation.

Okanagan Helicopters Ltd.

Personnel records

The series consists of personnel records, employee policy handbooks, and photographs and slides of various staff. The photographs predominantly date to the period 1953-1977, although there are several earlier images. The film reel, which shows a documentary featuring employee Bud Tillotson, dates to around 1967. Many of the photographs are assumed to have been taken in or near Vancouver, although some are from different BC towns. The images include candid photographs of staff, formal portraits of executive employees, and photographs from gatherings such as the 1972 Annual Meeting. Several of the photographs appear to have been used in commercial newspapers. Many of the general staff photographs are unidentified, although some dating to 1971 are labelled. The series also consists of several files specifically about founder Carl Agar, and includes photographs and textual material about his life and work.

The series also consists of a seniority list as of January 11, 1966 and a 1979 employee register. The seniority list provides individuals’ names and the date that they commenced work for the company, and the 1979 register lists over a hundred pages of staff names and addresses.

Some of the files include personal information, such as resumes, CVs, and correspondence regarding job vacancies and hiring. Application forms include a great deal of personal information. However, these records exist for a small number of individuals and are by no means complete, nor can they be seen as necessarily representative of the company’s hiring process.

The series also consists of obituaries and tributes for former employees. Tributes for those who died in crashes can be found in MS-3177.

Promotional material

The series consists of brochures, photographic prints, note pads, glossy folders and advertisement colour keys used by Okanagan Helicopters to advertise services and equipment. The brochures, printed between 1968 and 1970, informed clients of the company’s acquisition of new aircraft.

The series also consists of promotional material for the Aerial Line Stringer, dating to the late 1950s or early 1960s, and the Helicopter Underslung Spray System (HUSS) Bucket, which was patented in 1969.

The series also consists of a file that purports to be publicity material from the 1967 Abbotsford Airshow. Although it is unclear whether this is correct, captions on the photographs indicate that at least one of the images may have been taken at an airshow, and some of the photographs may have been used for publicity purposes.

The series also consists of graphic material that was used in the production of advertisements. Included are two sets of colour key transparencies and related material for advertisements with the tag lines “Okanagan Delivers” and “The Universal Experience.”

Related ephemera, such as badges, decals, matchbooks, and a baseball cap were transferred to the department of Human History at the Royal British Columbia Museum. Blank orange promotional note pads have been retained with the archival material.
The series is organized chronologically.

Proof sheets and photograph collections

The series consists of photographic proof sheets, prints, negatives, transparencies and slides maintained by Okanagan Helicopters Ltd and a collection of photographs compiled by chairman and president John Pitt that date from the mid-1960s to 1976. The proof sheets depict various operations and technical shots of Okanagan aircraft. The series encompasses the entire scope of Okanagan’s activities. Notably the series includes several images from Okanagan’s first flight in 1947, as well as photographs from the Kemano work site project in the 1950s and the 1970s High Arctic polar bear contract. Many of the photographs appear to have been taken across BC, including Vancouver, Prince George, Kemano, and Campbell River, as well as Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. The photographic proofs were originally in binders, and many were accompanied by a short index indicating where the images were taken and what they show.

John Pitts’ photo collection, which included several small envelopes of photographs, was comprised of numerous images of heli-skiing operations and general shots that are assumed to have been taken in BC during the 1970s. Also included in the collection are some general aircraft photos and several proof sheets for photographs taken of Pitts for the 1976 annual report. One group of photographs in Pitts’ collection appears to have been taken in England between 1967 and 1970 at the Autair Helicopter hangar, most likely in the vicinity of Luton Airport. Other images depict offshore drilling rigs that were most likely part of a 1970s operation based in Gander, Newfoundland.

Several of the photographs in the general photographic collection show evidence of use in newspaper publications, notably the Vancouver Sun, Prince George Citizen, and the Toronto Telegram.

Although the photographs demonstrate considerable overlap with other series, including MS-3180 MS-3188, MS-3189, MS-3190, and MS-3197 they have been arranged in this series as, due to the varied nature of the files, it would have been impossible to adequately arrange the images in other series.

Proof sheets originating with other companies can be found in MS-3178.

Reports

The series consists of operational, annual, and executive reports created by Okanagan Helicopters Ltd between 1948 and 1981. Annual reports include financial statements, as well as names of executive staff. The reports also feature development statements. The series also consists of a painting that was later used on the cover of an annual report. Operations reports were filed immediately following an operation and generally provide information on the operation dates, the total working days, the cost, the man hours involved, recommendations for the future, and the names of crew involved. Reports from 1949 were written by Carl Agar, and include photographs and a detailed report on the practice of ‘bump-jumping.’

The series also consists of reports issued by the Canadian Transport Commission on the national helicopter industry that were received by Okanagan Helicopters.

The series also consists of a confidential report submitted to Glenn McPherson in 1963 with a series of attached ‘exhibits.’ Also included are work order status reports, preliminary planning documents for helicopter positioning, a 1961 budgetary report, internal memos, and business plans.

A limited number of company reports were removed from their original location for research purposes during the early 1980s, and can be found in MS-3183. A selection of other annual reports was re-filed in Okanagan history files in series MS-3187.

The series is divided by type of report, and arranged chronologically within each section.

Sikorsky Aircraft

The series consists of photographs, slides, negatives, press releases, correspondence, training documents, and aircraft fact sheets documenting Okanagan’s ties to Igor Sikorsky and the Connecticut- based Sikorsky Aircraft company between 1957 and 1984. Many of the records were sent by Sikorsky Aircraft as promotional or informational material, and include a set of Sikorsky company newsletters. The photographs were collected by Okanagan Helicopters and were taken by local photographers, newspaper photographers, and official Sikorsky photographers. The photographs document different aircraft models and include photographs not only from the Sikorsky plant in the USA, but also images from Venezuela, and Arctic and Eastern Canada.

Due to inconsistencies in the creator’s filing structure, files that appear to have originally been part of a Sikorsky series have been moved into the operational series, as they deal primarily with specific operations. This is to assist researchers so that related operational files are not separated simply due to a lack of consistency in the creator’s filing system. However, these files are easily identifiable by their file titles, which include either “Sikorsky” or the “S” model number of the aircraft.

All textual and graphic records have been maintained by the archives; Sikorsky training films with no connection to Okanagan have been removed from the fonds. A list of these items is available.

The series is arranged with general Sikorsky material appearing first followed by records arranged by specific aircraft model number.

Training and manuals

The series consists of photographs and training manuals used by Okanagan pilots. The photographs include several images from the Penticton Training School taken during the 1950s, some of which may have been taken in conjunction with the National Film Board’s 1955 film “Vertical Flight.”

The series also consists of a variety of manuals created by Okanagan Helicopters Ltd, including operational, emergency response, and training booklets. Several of the manuals were written to fulfill requirements of the Department of Transportation, whereas others were written for use solely within the company. Notably, the series includes a copy of “Kopter Knowledge,” a 1954 manual written by founder Carl Agar.

The series also consists of several files from the General Files Library. Although the creator originally classified these as operational in nature, they contain a variety of manuals and sets of instructions.
The series consists of a set of inter-office memos issued to pilots and engineers that were collected in a binder. These memos provide updates and information on a variety of operational issues and were received in the same box as other manuals, indicating that they were most likely maintained for reference purposes.

The series is arranged chronologically.